Reservoir levels continue to rise unabated in Malaga despite increased demand from tourists at Easter

This is the current state of the water reserves across the whole of the province as run-off from the rain in March continues to top them up...

Chus Heredia

Malaga

Tuesday, 22 April 2025, 11:57

The continued runoffs following the series of Atlantic storms and lows that marked the second wettest March in Malaga province since records began continue to do their job. The reservoirs continue to acquire water. Moreover, this is despite the fact that the province has just come to the end of a Holy Week with excellent visitor numbers and, therefore, with a notable increase in demand on water supplies.

All the data logged by tourism organisations and the hotel and restaurant sector show an increase in business, with average occupancies of up to 85%. Turnover has been satisfactory and this is clearly driving demand for resources, one of those being water.

In the last seven days surface water reserves have increased by almost five million cubic metres. To illustrate such a quantity of water, this is what Malaga city would use up in over one month. Therefore, by 1pm on Monday this week, the province's reservoirs were storing 372 million cubic metres, that means over 60% full. In gross terms, this is the typical water usage of 5.5 million inhabitants for an entire year.

372

million cubic metres are currently stored in the province's seven reservoirs. This is the annual gross water consumption of 5.5 million people.

This level is almost twice as much as this time last year. Moreover, that was the time when two storms - Nelson and Gloria - just about saved the province from scraping the bottom of the reservoir barrel. Water was so scarce that the water companies were already installing pumps in some reservoirs like La Viñuela to take advantage of their dead pools (the portion of the reservoir that lies below the minimum operational water level) and also making plans to ship in water from elsewhere.

These are the best figures for water reserves in Malaga since 2020, when they stood at 414 million cubic metres. Furthermore, this record total would have been beaten had it not been for the decisions to discharge some excess water for safety reasons. With what has been released into the sea from La Concepción, Guadalhorce, Limonero and Casasola reservoirs, we would be talking about comfortably exceeding 430 million cubic metres of stored water supplies.

779

mm have been collected in La Concepción on the western Costa del Sol to date in the current hydrological year.

This new weekly increase is clearly attributable to the March rains still running into the reservoirs, given that the rainfall recorded in Malaga's reservoirs during Holy Week barely averaged 2-3mm.

If we analyse the rainfall so far this hydrological year (as of 1 October 2024), the levels alone illustrate the radical change in the situation. La Concepción, located between Marbella and Istán, has collected 779mm in these six months. It is followed by Conde de Guadalhorce, in El Chorro, with 632. But the one that has received the least, Casasola, in Almogía, still totals 587mm. Depending on each case, these totals amount to between two and five times more than at this time of year in 2024.

The result of all this is that the western Costa del Sol area is back to normality and out of any drought status and Malaga city is on the verge of being similarly classified. Meanwhile, in the Axarquia area, the numbers are also good enough to pass to the least serious level of drought ('moderate'). These are matters that will have to be endorsed at the next meeting of the Junta's drought management committee. At this time last year a large part of the province was in 'serious' drought status.

million cubic metres will be available for irrigation in the Axarquía and 30 in the Guadalhorce valley.

The reservoir that stores the most water is La Viñuela, which will allow more than 12 million cubic metres to be released this year for agricultural irrigation. Last year there were barely three. The reservoir holds 81 million cubic metres and is at around 50% of its filling capacity. Twelve months ago it had just about one third of its current reserves.

In second place is Guadalteba reservoir with 78 million cubic metres, also around half its maximum level. This is double last year's figures.

In third position is Conde de Guadalhorce. It is almost full with its 64 million cubic metres. It alone could provide drinking water for Malaga city for almost 15 months. Last year it was at a third of the current volume. The Guadalhorce irrigation system will also receive much more volume. The allocation of last season's nine million cubic metres has been increased to 30.

Behind the big dams are the 58 million cubic metres in the Guadalhorce reservoir and the 56 in La Concepción. In percentage terms the latter is in the best condition of all: 97.50% full.

Casasola is now down to 86% full and is still in the process of combating the serious clogging caused by the debris, silt and sediment from the two autumn 'Dana' weather events and the named storms that hit in March. An emergency pipeline has had to be built while the blockage of the bottom spillway, which has been bypassed, is being worked on. It is the only dam that was released to relieve pressure and not by opening the sluice gates. It is more than 18 million cubic metres full, but the dam's technicians estimate that a third of that volume is sediment that has accumulated at the bottom of the reservoir.

As for El Limonero, the other flood control dam, it is holding 14.7 million cubic metres after losing approximately three million cubic metres during a cleaning operation.

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